John Herdman brings in 27 players for Canadian women's national team camp

December 4, 20129:32 AM PST

The Canadian Soccer Association announced on Tuesday that Vancouver Whitecaps FC women’s striker Jenna Richardson and Girls Elite striker Summer Clarke are among 27 players called up for an upcoming women’s national team year-end training and assessment camp. The camp will run for nine days, from December 12 to 20 in Vancouver.

This is the first senior national team call-up for both Clarke and Richardson. This past season Richardson - a graduate of Whitecaps FC's girls development program - was named to the W-League All-Western Conference Team after scoring four goals and registering four assists in nine appearances. The White Rock, BC, native also played in all three matches for Canada at this year's FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, scoring one goal and recording one assist. Clarke, meanwhile, played in all four matches for Canada at this year's FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, scoring a goal.

Clarke and Richardson are both former members of the BC Soccer Provincial Team Program and the National Training Centre.

Richardson is joined on the roster by two fellow 2012 Whitecaps FC women's players in midfielders Kaylyn Kyle and Desiree Scott, who each played in the home opener, as well as defender Melanie Booth and striker Brittany Timko, who were both on the roster but did not play in any matches.

“The camp will have our Olympians as well as some new players looking to stake a claim to be part of our four-year plan towards the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015 and Rio 2016 Women’s Olympic Football Tournament,” said women’s national team head coach John Herdman. “The camp will provide baseline testing as well as serve as an identification camp as we launch our new quadrennial cycle in 2013.”

Of note, Herdman did not call in players that competed at the elite or college level after the Olympics or players that are recovering from injury. Both Diana Matheson and Rhian Wilkinson who won a Norwegian title with Lillestrøm SK Kvinner in November, for instance, will not take part in the December national camp.

“With a break given to our Olympic players that went straight into a pro or college season or that are presently recovering from injury, it has opened the door to identify new and past players from our national program,” said Herdman.

In 2012, Canada won a bronze medal at the London 2012 Women’s Olympic Football Tournament.